Awakening (Children of Angels) (7 page)

She sat up, and gazed around, her eyes adjusting to the brightness and the sudden explosion of colour. There was the grass, a deep and bright lively green, interspersed with brightly coloured small flowers, of a kind that Mia had never seen before. Further over to her left, there was the beginning of a dense forest, and even here, there were an array of shades of green, lush and fresh-looking. The sun was beginning to get higher already, and Mia was surprised to find how quickly she had become hot, how dry her throat was, and she choked involuntarily with thirst.

As if responding to her thirst, she became aware of the sound of trickling water, somewhere over to her right. In this direction, she could see nothing for miles but more lush grass and tiny dots of colour as far as the eye could see, where flowers had sprung up between the blades of grass. Still, she was certain that this was the direction the water sound was coming from. Slowly and stiffly, as though she had been asleep for a long time, she stood up and began to move towards it. The only sound, besides the trickling water, was the soft whispering of her feet against the grass. Her feet were wet, and she looked down to see why - she had not thought the dew was so heavy it would soak through her shoes. Her feet were bare. She stopped for a moment, and stared at them in puzzlement. Hadn’t she been wearing shoes before? But as she stood there, and licked her lips as she tried to remember, she felt them crack and tasted a hint of blood on her tongue. She remembered now, she was very thirsty. She forgot about the shoes and listened again for the sound of the water.

She continued to walk towards the sound, which was growing louder and more enticing. She stepped carefully, afraid her bare feet would meet a rock or a thorn, but she needn’t have worried, all that was beneath them was soft fresh grass. Finally, she came to it. Where the field had appeared to be unbroken as far as the eye could see, it concealed a clear sparking stream, low-banked either side by a smattering of smooth pebbles amongst soft sand. The water was so pure and shallow that Mia could see the bed of the stream clearly, and that there were no sharp rocks here either. She knelt down and scooped up some of the delightfully cool water in her hand, then drank it greedily. It had a certain sweetness to it, and was more refreshing than anything she had ever drunk before. After she had drunk her fill, she played, childlike, in the water for a while. Dipping her toes into it, she felt the wonderful coolness wash over her bare feet. Had it not been so shallow, she would cheerfully have bathed in it.

After a while, she grew tired of playing in the stream, and realized that the harsh sun was now very high in the sky, and beating down on her.

Looking all around her, she could see no other option but the forest, which she felt sure would offer at least some protection from the burning rays, if not some coolness from this heat. Eagerly, she walked lightly across the field, rejoicing at the feeling of the now dry and warm grass under her feet, and remembering at least, that she was delighted to be alive. She didn't know what this place was, but she liked it here alright. It was beautiful, and peaceful, as though not another soul existed in all the world. It was not like the tower dreams at all - despite knowing she was alone here, she didn’t feel lonely in the slightest, she simply felt at peace.

As she reached the forest, she peeked cautiously into the darkness beyond. She had a sudden pang of doubt. Maybe it would be better for her to stay out here, in the sun, with the flowers and the stream. She could get lost amongst that tangled mess of trees and vines, and she had no idea what waited for her in the darkness and gloom of the forest.

She looked back and forth between the cool, shady and mysterious forest, and the wide open plains with the tiny flowers and blades of shockingly green grass dancing gently in the breeze, while the sun blazed overhead.

“
Perhaps if I just stay here at the edge of the forest, under the canopy of these trees
”
she thought to herself.

It seemed to be a good compromise, and nodding to herself, as if to affirm the decision, she climbed carefully over a fallen and decaying tree trunk. She thought it strange, that it should be there. There was no sign of other humans or even any other animals, and she wondered how the tree had come to fall. The rest of the forest, at least what she could see of it, looked to be thriving and wholly alive.

The moment she was over the fallen tree, the air around her changed. It seemed that the vast canopy above her stopped the gentle breeze from entering, and although she was sheltered from the sun, the air was perfectly still, stuffy and humid. The trees stood silently too, and Mia found this particularly odd. She had never been in a completely silent forest before - there was always a faint breeze, or the scrabbling of an animal, the swish of the leaves as a bird or squirrel brushed past a branch - here there was nothing. It was peaceful, but eerie, in a way. Too quiet. Mia felt something which at first she thought was fear - but quickly realized was not. No, this feeling was not the same as fear - it was more like a burning curiosity.
What
was in these woods? What kept them so still and so quiet?

She laughed to herself then, realizing how silly that sounded. Nothing kept them still. Nothing kept them quiet. It was just that the trees were too large, too densely packed, for the gentle breeze to pass through here. Still, she thought she might like to explore. She looked down at the ground, to see if it would be safe with her bare feet. Here too, there was no sign of rocks or stones. Just a carpet of fallen leaves, slightly damp on her bare feet, with a mixture of dew and decay. Here too, a few flowers peeked through, but much fewer in number than out on the fields. Mia wondered how they got any sunlight at all down here. She could see no breaks in the canopy when she looked up, and though she knew the sun was shining brightly overhead, in the forest was an eerie green-lit dusk.

As she looked up at the canopy above, which seemed to glow an unnatural green as the sunlight illuminated the leaves, Mia heard a sound, just in front of her. Her head snapped back down and her eyes immediately began searching for the source of the sound. She listened carefully, standing perfectly still. After a moment or two, just as she was convinced she had imagined it, she heard it again - a rustling, through the leaf-litter on the forest floor. It sent shivers down her spine, and she was not quite sure why. Hadn’t it only been a minute or two since she was wondering why there were
no
sounds? Why did this one seem out of place?

She moved cautiously in the direction of the sound, and noticed that as she drew closer, the sound simultaneously became louder and moved further away from her, as though whatever was making it was no longer trying to be quiet - it was just trying to get away. Something else was alive in this forest, and Mia had a sudden determination to find out what it was. She quickened her pace, her eyes searching the ground before her for what could be making the sound. And then the noise simply stopped, although there was nothing she could see that could have been making it.

Slowly, Mia turned in a full circle, scanning the leaf-litter for signs of anything hiding beneath the decaying leaves, or a burrow or hole something could have slipped into. And then she heard a faint rustle from the tree above, and as she raised her eyes from the ground, she came face to face with what had made the noise on the ground, and what was now hanging from the tree and staring directly at her - a huge yellow-eyed snake.

She stood there for a while, just staring at the perfectly motionless snake staring back at her. Neither moved, both seemed to be waiting for the other to make the first move. Mia scrabbled through her mind for what one was supposed to do if they ever found themselves confronted by a snake. Instantly she felt stupid - who on earth would have taught her that? And
why
would they have taught her that? Crazy dogs, yes, she knew what to do with them. But why on earth would anyone ever tell her how to deal with a snake staring right into her eyes, mere inches from her face?

It was impressive in size, at first glance it seemed to be entirely black, but as she stared she noticed it was actually a dark green, and it’s back was patterned with a slightly lighter shade of green marking out patterns all along it. It’s belly, from the little she could see, appeared to be quite pale, and it’s eyes were huge. Huge and yellow, and as she stared at them she noticed tiny flecks of gold in them. And a few, barely noticeable rust-coloured flecks too. The more she stared at this snake, the more beautiful she found it. After some time, how long it was she couldn’t be sure, the snake moved, breaking the silence of the forest.

It dropped itself to the ground with a thud, and quickly uncoiled itself from the heap it had landed in. It began to move off through the forest, and Mia felt compelled to follow. Now she could see how truly impressive the snake was - it was longer than she was tall, and it’s body was about as thick as her thigh. She moved silently through the forest behind it, not knowing why she was doing it. Following an obvious danger, this huge threat, deeper and deeper into a dark and tangled forest. But she was not afraid. Instead she followed curiously, into a deeper and darker gloom.

She was barely able to see through the thick darkness of the forest, and then, a few metres ahead, she saw that it was getting lighter. There was once again the green-tinged light, growing steadily brighter. Either she had passed through the entire forest, or she was approaching a clearing. She looked back towards the ground in front of her, realizing she had not checked for a while on where the snake was. She couldn't see it, and for a moment she was concerned by this. But then Mia remembered she didn’t know why she had been following the snake in the first place - the snake was not important, she decided, and she changed course slightly to head towards where it was getting brighter.

She moved clumsily through the tangled roots of the trees and the shrubs and bushes that somehow managed to grow here in this dim and gloomy light. Finally, she stepped out into blazing sunshine. After the gloom of the forest, the sudden bright light hurt her eyes, and she had to shield them quickly with her arm. Gradually, and with great curiosity, she dropped her arm and allowed her eyes to adjust to the light. It was a clearing, and not the end of the forest.

All around this circular clearing, the trees were thick and tangled, and there was darkness beyond. But here, the sun shone brightly, and the grass and flowers danced on the lightest breeze, as they had done in the open field beyond. It was beautiful, a miniature version of the endless field beyond the dense forest. Again she heard the enticing trickle of a stream flowing somewhere nearby. This time, she found it easily - a pool at the far end of the clearing, where a stream flowed out of the forest and splashed down a miniature waterfall of smooth pebbles, and into a crystal clear pond below. Eagerly, she hurried towards it and scooped up the clear cool water in her hand, greedily drinking it down as fast as she could. She splashed some of the deliciously cool water over her face, and felt better. She had not even realized how humid it had been, and that she was covered in a thin film of sweat.

She heard another sound then, disturbing the peace of the clearing and its tinkling stream - the sound of twigs snapping, off to her right. She turned towards the forest there, but could see nothing. Then, from her left, came a rustle she recognized. It was the sound the snake had made as it slithered through the tree. She turned, instead, towards that sound, and sure enough, she saw the snake’s tail vanish between the leaves of a tree bearing bright red apples.

“
Odd.
”
Mia thought to herself, and her face scrunched up in concentration as she tried to remember seeing the apple tree before. Cautiously, she approached, and looked up into the tree, to see if she could see the snake. All she could see was the gentle movement of branches and leaves as it moved through them unseen. As Mia leaned against the rough bark of the apple tree and peered upwards again, she once again heard the sounds of something moving through the forest. It didn't sound the same as when the snake moved through the forest. This sounded more like when
she
had moved through the forest. Something walking, then, she thought to herself.

Curiosity got the better of her and she moved back from the tree, peering instead into the forest near the clearing’s glittering pool. A moment or two later, the branches and bushes began to move, as though something big was fighting it’s way through.

What emerged from the trees was definitely
not
what Mia had expected to see. Although when she thought back on it later, she didn’t really know
what
she had expected to see coming through the undergrowth.

What came out of those trees, looking around as uncertainly and as sun-blinded as Mia herself knew she had done mere minutes before, was a boy.

The boy seemed just as startled to see her as she was to see him. He, as she had done, lowered his arm and allowed his eyes to adjust to the new brightness in the clearing. He met her eyes and smiled shyly. She returned his smile, and tried to hide her surprise at finding him here - or rather, him finding her. He went to the stream she had just been to, drank deeply and then washed his face as she had done. She watched him, but for a reason even she didn't know, she did not speak to him. Perhaps, she thought to herself, speaking now would break the magic of this beautiful place. After he was refreshed, he looked around uncertainly and shyly. Hesitating for a moment, he bit his lip nervously before seeming to make his decision.